1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to display devices, more particularly to kaleidoscopic displays whereby a plurality of messages are sequentially displayed in a single display aperture.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Articulated advertising displays on which various messages are cyclically shown have been known in the past. Most such prior art displays, however, utilize three dimensional articulated elements which are normally moved in coherent rotation so that at any one instant of time one common surface is displayed. On this common surface an advertising slogan or message is inscribed and as the segments are rotated the other sides thereof are exposed to view, other messages are thus displayed. This manner of producing a cyclic display entails, however, many movable parts which have to operate in a coherent relationship with each other. Integration of such a plurality of parts normally entails large production costs with a result that such displays are typically too expensive for commercial acceptance.
Other multiple message displays often rely on light refraction through a plurality of prisms where the message displayed depends on the viewing angle of the display surface. These displays, while not very expensive, lack the desired optical fidelity found necessary in advertising. Thus in each application a decision has to be made between cost and fidelity.
An additional consideration necessarily contemplated in deciding which of the display forms are to be chosen is the complexity of the first prior art devices. Structures of this complexity always present the chance for malfunction. Very often this chance for malfunction, with the resulting derogation of the message, is the decisive factor in determining whether a display is used or not.
Furthermore, the transition patterns between messages of the prior art devices are typically plain, being dictated by the shape of the apparatus. During this transition the attention of the viewer is easily diverted with the attendant loss of effectiveness of the device.